And That's What It's All About
by GollumPanties
Summary: I wanted to write something centered on the Destiny Trio and this was the idea that came up. Written from Riku's point of view- Kairi and Sora suddenly become manipulative. Fluffy fluffy cuteness.
1. Chapter 1

**Title**: And That's What It's All About (part 1)**  
Spoilers**: ... It's set post-KHII. So probably, yeah. XD**  
Rating**: G**  
Pairing(s)**: Kairi/Sora and Kairi/Riku, if you really squint. (No. I typed those TOTALLY CORRECTLY.)**  
Summary/Notes**: I blame Sus and Bulba for the mental image of Riku singing nursery rhymes. Also, Riku is ttly a dork. A squishy squishy dork. :D

Why do I start loving characters when I write them? Funny story: I actually got a nosebleed in the middle of writing this. It was in the middle of class too, and I just went, "ackpbbth WHY? I was just thinking about how much I wanted lunch! D:"  
It was funny.

--

Riku was at a loss. The situation had never come up- Sora never had enough manipulation in his soul before. He'd changed over the course of his journey and Riku wasn't sure he liked this new development.

It had all started about half an hour previously when Sora had sat down beside him and inquired as to what Riku was thinking.

Watching the ocean with the others had once been Riku's favorite pastime. He still enjoyed it, the same way he enjoyed doing anything with his friends, but now it also gave him this nagging reminder of what had happened the last time they had left their islands. The other two had forgiven him completely, but that usually only made Riku feel guiltier. He hid it because it would only worry Sora and Kairi. But today his thoughts ran along a particularly melancholy line. He explained as much to Sora, who gave him the look he had been dreading- a mixture of concern and exasperation.  
"_Ri_ku," Sora said, shaking his head, "You know Kairi and I are gonna back you up no matter what. We're your _friends_ and we _trust_ you."  
"But I wish you wouldn't! Not quite so much. Not when I don't know if I can trust myself..."  
"_Ri_ku..."  
"_So_ra."

Riku wasn't sure how it had happened but he was now faced with a sulking Sora sitting with his back to him, hugging his own knees.  
"Come on," Riku pleaded, "Sora, look at me."  
Silence. Riku had no idea what to do- Sora never sulked, and he had come to depend on Sora's constant optimism. He felt lost at this sudden turn of events, so when he heard a voice call out he was relieved.  
"Sora! Riku!"  
Kairi. Kairi would know the right thing to do, the right thing to say. He felt a surge of gratitude and affection at her arrival. Kairi took one puzzled glance at the scene and looked at Riku, inquiry in her eyes. Riku gestured helplessly at the huddled figure.  
"He's sulking!"  
"I can _see_ that, Riku. _Why_?"  
"_I_ don't know. He-"  
"Yes, you do," came a muffled voice from Sora.  
Kairi went over to him and Riku could make out indistinct whispers coming from the pair. Kairi stood back up and put her hands on her hips.  
"_Ri_ku." she said accusingly.  
Riku was suddenly more lost than ever. The helpless confusion filled his brain again as he was faced with yet another concerned and annoyed look. Kairi glanced meaningfully at Riku, then at Sora, then at Riku again. She gestured at Sora emphatically and then stood looking at Riku. Riku turned to the huddled lump that was Sora.  
"Sora," he said desperately, "I take back what I said. I'm feeling much better!"  
Sora peeked one eye over his shoulder.  
"Prove it."  
Riku blinked, slightly surprised.  
"Prove it?" he echoed, "How am I gonna do _that_?"  
He half-turned to Kairi, who raised her eyebrows and jerked her head in Sora's direction. Obviously he would get no help from that quarter.  
"How do you want me to prove it?" he asked again.  
The figure appeared to contemplate this for a moment. Was it just Riku's imagination or was that pause a little longer than natural? The eye appeared over Sora's shoulder again.  
"You could do the dance," Sora suggested innocently.  
Riku sighed. "I'm not gonna do the dance."  
Sora turned back around and buried his face in his knees again.  
"You always used to do the dance with me," he complained.  
"Sora! We were _five_!"  
Sora merely sniffed.

Riku groaned internally and quickly glanced around to make sure that no one was looking. He walked over to stand next to Sora and sighed.  
"... Head and shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes..." he started in a not-quite-musical drone.  
Sora gave him a mournful look over his arms and Kairi tilted her head to one side. Riku continued, slightly louder.  
"Head and shoulders, knees and toes, knees and to-oes..."  
Sora suddenly grinned, jumped up, and took up the next line.  
"A-and eyes and ears," he sang, poking the aforementioned features on Riku's face, "and mo-outh a-and nose!"  
The two of them finished the song together, dancing and grinning at each other.  
"Head and shoulders, knees and toes! Knees and toes!"

Riku straightened up and let his arms drop back to his sides while Sora wiped the back of his hand across his forehead exaggeratedly.  
"Gee, thanks, Riku," he laughed, "I needed that."  
Kairi laughed. She walked up to Riku, leaned forward, and looked up at him, clasping her hands behind her back.  
"Now no more brooding, okay?" she asked.  
Riku couldn't help but smile.  
"Your best Aerith impression, right?" he answered, "Well, in that case, I'll have to do my best."  
"And your _best_ is no brooding, right?" Sora smiled, resting his hands on the back of his head.  
"All right, all right!" Riku laughed again, "No brooding! I promise!"  
"We'll hold you to that, you know," Kairi teased.  
Riku looked at both his friends and once again was filled with gratitude.  
"I wouldn't want it any other way."


	2. Chapter 2

**Title**: And That's What It's All About (part 2)**  
Spoilers**: ... It's set post-KHII. So probably, yeah. XD**  
Rating**: G**  
Pairing(s)**: Kairi/Sora and Kairi/Riku, if you squint. (No. I typed those TOTALLY CORRECTLY.)**  
Summary/Notes**: Building on the idea of the first one. Shorter than the first one, but required more revision. XD

Really... everyone is a squishy squishy dork. WHY, BRAIN? WHY?

--

They were off again. When the letter had come from the king, Sora had gone into fits of excitement over the prospect of traveling with his friends again. Kairi had put her foot down and insisted that she was coming along. Riku could see that while Sora was pleased to finally go adventuring with his childhood friends, he was slightly uneasy about Kairi's involvement. Riku thoght back to when they were all little kids. He remembered the countless boasts, the teasing arguments, and the friendly competition over who would get to help Kairi this time.

But even back then she was tougher than people gave her credit for. Riku had to hide a smile as he remembered Sora running down the beach barefoot with a particularly irate crab in pursuit. He could still remember the panic he had felt when the crab had turned on him. It had been closing in on Riku's toes when Kairi's hand had suddenly grasped it from behind. She had picked it up and tossed it back into the water before turning around and giggling at the boys' hot and flustered faces. And now she was learning to wield a Keyblade, standing up to the two of them in practice rounds. No, Kairi could take care of herself.

And she could make Sora and Riku do _anything_. With cheerful bullying, with an upraised eyebrow, or an annoyed look. And then she'd smile and thank them and it would all be worth it. It was just... funny watching her employ these tricks on someone not in their little group.

Currently Sora was huddled in the corner again and Kairi was looking at Leon pleadingly. A debate had sprung up shortly after they had arrived at Merlin's house in Radiant Garden. Riku couldn't even remember what had set it off, but it had produced a result which seemed to have taken Leon completely off guard. At that moment he was hurriedly trying to coax Sora out of the corner while simultaneously avoiding Kairi's eyes. Riku felt for the man, he really did. He was just relieved that for once he wasn't the target of such ploys.  
Yuffie chimed in from her place on the table.  
"Leon! Come on, you can't let him sulk all day!"  
"But what do you want me to _do_?" Leon asked, confused.  
"We _told_ you," said Kairi, looking even more pitiful, "You just _won't_."  
Leon covered his face with his hand.  
"It won't _work_," he groaned, "You've got to be kidding me."  
Riku found himself speaking up.  
"Yes, it will. It'll work," he said.  
He almost felt bad about roping someone else into the same task he'd been faced with not long ago. But at this point he was half-convinced that it was all an elaborate prank on the part of Sora and Kairi. And he certainly didn't have any qualms about taking part in a prank, especially one of this brilliance. If it... was a prank.

Leon seemed to finally break under the combined force of Sora, Kairi, and Yuffie's efforts. He gave a groan which was all too familiar to Riku since it was one that he'd been making in his own head for years whenever Sora or Kairi had convinced him to do anything.  
"Yuffie," Leon said in tones of defeat, "... close the door, will you?"  
Yuffie stifled a whoop of glee and leapt up to comply. When he was sure the entrance behind him was closed, Leon turned to face Sora and Kairi and squared his shoulders determinedly.  
"I'm a little teapot," he began, "short and stout."  
Riku was impressed at how confident his voice was. Leon, having decided to proceed, had determined to give it his all.  
"Here is my handle," he continued, placing one hand on his hip, "Here is my spout." One hand at and angle off to the other side.  
Sora was watching over one shoulder, Kairi was smiling encouragingly, and Yuffie, perched once again on the table, was making no effort to mask the insane pleasure she was taking from the scene.  
"When I get all steamed up, hear me shout," Leon was nearing the end, "tip me over and pour me out."  
At the last line, he gave a surprisingly agile and graceful dip to one side, perfectly mimicking a teapot's pour.  
He straightened up to a round of applause from his audience. Sora had spun around and was sprawled on the floor, grinning at Leon.

"I had no idea you were so good at nursery rhymes, Leon," came a quiet, cheerful voice from the previously closed doorway.  
Leon stiffened slightly and turned to see Aerith smiling guilelessly from the entrance.  
"I was just coming in to see if anyone wanted something to drink," she continued, still smiling.  
Amidst a chorus of drink requests, Riku could hear Leon mutter, "You'd _think_ making a fool of myself would be enough punishment to get me out of Aerith's lemonade..."

Riku chuckled to himself. Facing down crabs and singing children's songs in public would never be a barrel of laughs to him, but he knew it would always be worth it to see the kind of smiles that were on his friends' faces right now.

--

Yeah. I made a KH manga joke. Totally worth it! Aerith's lemonade can kill weeds, I'm convinced. Same chemical substance as Sophie's weed killer in Howl's Moving Castle. Truefax.  
And did you know putting milk in it makes it taste better? 8D


End file.
